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Hawnay Troof returns with Islands Of Ayle - one of the most refreshing records of the decade! Intricate production combined with supreme lyrical confidence pushes electronic dance music down a path it's never been before. The party has started.

Hawnay Troof approaches music as a 're-sequencing of ideas' or a demolishing/re-making of the rules. Restoring art and sound to their primary and vital function: a connection into the natural world viewing everything from depression to euphoria with a sense of awe at the magnificence that lies within all of our daily lives.
The latest Hawnay Troof LP, Islands Of Ayle, picks up where the last left off. A decorated teenage bedroom painted with the energy of a mad man on the run. After he won over so many bloggers and had crazed crowds of hundreds in different parts of the world, strictly by word of mouth, who would expect any less from him in 2008? His music is magnetic. The life contained within brings art back to it's primal importance of connecting with the observer. Fastly becoming one of the underground's best kept secrets.
For years, one man maestro Vice Cooler (who technically is Hawnay Troof) had unintentionally remained lo-fi. Finding his way as any craftsman does, he created two albums' worth of material. The records became a map of his artistic journey, one that has naturally led into maturity and positive progression. Islands Of Ayle stands as a notable turning point in Cooler's career. As animated as it is sentimental, undoubtedly it will be a welcomed evolution as well as a surprise to friends, enemies, and strangers alike.

Whether it is the potent, upfront vocals or the strenuous production throughout the LP's 13 tracks, one thing remains unquestionable: his growing strength as a songwriter. Clearly learning from his mistakes the unclear vocals were replaced with more clarity, thought, and delivery. Listeners will find the lyrical confidence of The Streets or MIA tied up with the vulnerability and beauty of Kimya Dawson. The production is now more intricate and melodic as opposed to the straight ahead beats of the past, not too far from Deerhoof's hooks having a handshake with Peaches beatbox. The basslines are a welcomed bonus, as someone finally lent him a synthesiser! Islands Of Ayle is a force to be dealt with, pushing electronic dance music further down a trail that it has lately avoided: completely fucked pop music.

During his 20 month world tour for his last album, Dollar And Deed, Vice Cooler utilized his travel to create an intricate library of samples. From vintage, oscillating melodies made in Berlin with Stereo Total's Bretzel Goring (performing on Island Of Ayle's Front My Hope), to the chopped up countryside field recording on Zhou Zhong (where the spine of the song is based on field recordings of cows' bells Cooler heard while he was traveling in the Swiss Alps) one thing remains constant: this stands as one of the most refreshing records of the decade. A captivatingly precise ear for sound that bonds with each listener.

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released June 1, 2008

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Southern RecordsLondon, UK

Fiercely independent since forever, Southern Records has a musical pedigree which stretches way back to 1977, when a band
called Crass was founded (and proceeded to change punk & the world forever...but that's another story). For years Southern operated as a recording studio & the biz wheels behind labels like Crass, Corpus Christi, Bluurg & Dischord, before launching an eponymous imprint in 1991...more